Method and apparatus for perforating motion picture film



July 12, 1932. J JONES 7 1,866,711

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PERFORATING MOTION PICTURE FILM Filed'Dec. 27, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Jvwmdot duh-r1 E Jones.

July 12, 1932. ONE 1,866,711

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PERFORATING MOTION PICTURE FILM Filed Dec. 27, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 provide a perforator in which the film die. Still another object to provide a film guideway with as little fr1ca short section of the film other Objects will appear from the following use with thepanoram Patented July 12, 1932 UNITED STATES or ROCHESTER, NEW YORK,

PATENT OFFICE] IOH'N G. JONES, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK 1 METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PERFORATIN G MOTION PICTURE FILM Application filed December 27, 1929. Serial No. 416,874.

This invention relates to perforating machines for motion picture film. One object of my invention is to provide a perforating machine which will not contact with either side of a film during the perforating operation. Another object of my invention is to guides and the punch and die contact only withthe edges of the film. Another object of my invention is to prevent buckling and hold the film rigorously fiat beneath the punch and of my invention is tion as possible and with ameans for holding perfectly fiat and specification, the novel features being particularly pointed out inthe claims at the end thereof. u I

well known in the motion picture art it is necessary to perforate the film with extreme accuracy since small irregularities between the perforations. will produce flicker on-the screen and will preventl satisfactory pictures from being made and shown. 7 This difliculty greatly increases with the.

width of the filnr, it being comparatively simple to hold a 16mm. film suflicientlyflat for perforating and being very difiicult to hold a wide film such as has lately come into type of motion pictures and withsound motion pictures and for other purposes, this film often being 75 mm. or more in width.

In addition to the difiiculty of holding the film flat it has rate film without touching. either side ofthe I motion picture film surface. "black and white pictures of the standard been found difficult to perfomm{ width where a sensitive emulsion was coatedon one side only, the filmcould be supported between its edges without seriously damagingthe film.

But with the systems of color photography which have comeinto use film coated on both [sides is employed more and more often and 7 any part of a perforatingm'achine which contacts with a part of the sensitive coating on such film is liable toleave scratches, abrasion marks and other markings whichmay color motion film is held In ordinary appear in the picture area. In the case of pictures this is particularly disagreeable because such scratches ordinarily.

would appear through only that surface which is dyed red or green (in a two color system) so that there will result unpleasant red or green flashes on the screen which are far more noticeable than the ordinary scratches.

The desired type of motion picture apparatus, therefore, 1s one in which the film is supported solely outside of that area which is later used for pictures and one: in which the perfectly flat during the perforating operation since, of course, buckling will alter the width between the perforations j251d thus spoil accurate registration of the Coming now to the drawings wherein like reference characters denote like. parts throughout:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a schematic showlng of a'film perforator constructed in accordance with my invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail in side elevation showing the film guides to and from the punch and die which perforate the film;

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic showing of another form'of my'invention;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the film guides shown in Fig. 2;

gig; 5 is a section through the film guides; an

Fig. 6 is a plan view of the die plate showing the cutaway or relieved central portion.

In perforating film it is common practice to move film 1 from a supply reel 2 past a punch 3 by means of a suitable intermittently driven film moving mechanism 4 from which the film finally wound up on a film reel 6. Leading to and from the punch 3 are guideways 7 and 8 and in accordance with my invention I prefer to curve these guideways. a

The directionof the curve is not particu- 1 may be led over a sprocket 5 and larly material since the film may beheld guide 7Ais curved inone direction and. the

guide SA'leading from the punch 3 is curved in an opposite direction.

In a preferred embodiment of my invention, as shown in Fig. 2, the guide 7 and the guide 8 may be mounted upon a suitable support 9.

Guide 7 consists of a curved plate 10 arcuate in shape, this curve plate, as best shown in Fig. 5, having cutaway portions in the center 11 and 12 and having film supporting rollers 13 adapted to contact with the edges only of a film passing over the plate 10.'

Above rollers 13' are mounted second sets of rollers 14 and 15, the former set being carried by a removable member 16 which is thrust in the direction shown by the arrow by means of a plunger 17 pressed by spring 18 and having a handle 19 by which the plunger may be moved against spring pressure.

p The second set of rollers is carried by a removable plate 20 as shown in Fig. 4, both members 16 and 20 can be removed by handles 21 and 22 when a spring catch 23 or 24 is released by moving the platesthrough an arcuate path from beneath the holding plates 23 and 2 1.

The curved guide 8 is quite similar to the curved guide above described except that the rollers 25 and 26 are spaced some distance;

from the rollers 27 and 28 so that there will be room between these sets of rollers to provide an intermittent film moving mechanism of any desired kind such as that shown diagrammatically in Fig. 4;,

' From Fig. 6 it W111 be seen that the die member is provided with raised edges 29 which have two series 30 of perforations therein and between the raised edges 29 is a countersunk central portion'31. By cutting portion of the diein this away the central left to contact with that manner no part is portion of the film which is used for pictures.

Ordinarily a filmand particularly a wide film could not lie fiat on a die of thiskind but flexing the film almost, if notquite, up to die the film is held extremely fiat across y the the face of the die and any tendency to buckleis eliminated.

It is common practice in order to register the film properly on the-die to press the film in one direction by means of a slide. This is shown in 5 wherein the plate 16 is.

spring pressed in the direction shown by the arrow so as to contact with the edge of the film. If, however, the film is allowed to buckle slightly, the edges of the film will be pressed closer together than they should be. By curving the practically impossible to buckle the film with any ordinary pressure.

The punch as shown diagrammatically in Fig. 1 may be of any standard-or preferred type in which there are a series of guiding fingers 34.- and a series of punches 35, the

' machine,

of mechanism for film toor from the die itis guiding fingers being adapted to position the film by entering the freshly cut perforations in advance of the punches which cut a second set of apertures in the film. This structure may be of any well known or preferred type.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a motion picture film perforating. machine, the combination with a punch and die, of mechanism for holding film fiat between the punch and die for perforating comprisin arcuate shaped guideways adapted to flex the film on each side of the punch and die and to hold a portion of the film fiat between the guideways, said guideways contacting with the film edges only.

the punch and die for perforating comprismg arcuate shaped guideways contacting with the edges ofthe film only and adapted to flex-the film on 'each side of the punch and die both of said arcuate shaped guideways being curved in the same direction.

4:. In a motion picture film perforating machine, the combination with a punch and die, of mechanism for holding film fiat between the punch and die forperforating comprising a curved guideway contacting with the film only along the edges thereof for the film leading fromthe punch and die.

7 5. In a motion picture film perforating machine,the combination with apunchand die, holding film fiat between the punch and die for perforating compris ing curved guideways engaging the film edges only and leading to and from the punch and die.

chine, the combination of film guideways having curved ends and'adapted tocontact with only the edges of a film, a die having a recess over the major portion thereof with a raised 'die member, a punch adapted to enter the die member, whereby filmwill contact with the perforating machine only along the margins of the film.

to perforate film having two or more sens1- tive layers thereon comprising a punch and die and film guides all having film guideways at least partially curved, said film guideways being cut away through the central portion thereof whereby the film may be supported 6. In a motion picture film perforating ma- 7. In a film perforatlng machine adapted i solely by the margins and the sensitive surface of the film will lie out of contact with any part of the erfora-ting machine.

8. A method a? perforating motion picture lm comprising forming a flat portion in the film by bending portions on each side of the flat portions solely by the edges and perforating the flat portion of the film.

-9. A method of perforating film when in a y m flat condition including preventing buckling of the film by curving a portion thereof by the film edges only and perforating the film adjacent the curved portion. l

10, A method of erforating film when in a fiat condition inc uding preventing buckling of the film beneath a punch and die by curving the film solely by the edges on each side of the punch and die.

Signed at Rochester, New York, this 19th 7 20 day of Dec., 1929.

JOHN G. ONES. 

